I have had, and still have some top Notch amplifiers...Quad 405-2... leak stereo 20, Sony 700es, just to mention a few... But and it's a very big but... the yarland fv 3ciii has really drawn my attention.

I've grown up with music all around me, so my music is very eclectic, from dance hall, to lovers rock, rock steady, R&B, slow jams, to David Bowie, the clash, ub40....,classical... yes a real music specialist...
I can assure you I have also combined many speakers all brands high ends, and even speakers considered not that good...
So you can say, I know and listen to music well....i thought...till I listened to my yarland... for days I played all sorts of music realising how excellent this little valve amp is...it picks out every instruments, voice, etc... I even thought at one point someone was in the house...no it was the sound stage of this little gem... this is by far and I mean far, the best sounding amp I have had...bargain of the century....my mates come round just to hear her sing...
I have though used the aux input to the output of my Denon pre amp... and have full control of bass and treble so my yarland acts as a power amp... cheating... sound is so remarkable...i just wish it was 20wpc....

I've just taken delivery of my first foray into the world of tube/valve amps - a Yarland FV34c III. This is a relatively inexpensive 2 x 10w tube amp from China, where the majority of tube amps seem to be made nowadays.

My current amp is a Quad 306 which is old but no slouch. I wasn't expecting a massive improvement with a new but cheap, valve amp - I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

I wired it up, switched it on and grabbed a handful of albums that I've been listening to for years (or decades in some cases) so I know them inside out.
Listening selection for this first session:
Kate Bush, Hounds of Love
Marillion, Misplaced Childhood
Metallica, Master of Puppets
John Rutter, Requiem (reference recordings version)
Gladiator soundtrack
Sheffield Lab, Sheffield Drive

Vinyl purists can feel free to throw rotten fruit at me as most of these were CD's; proper vinyl mania will follow in due course.

First impressions? I'm impressed! There is definitely a different but very likeable sound with this amp. OK the midrange/vocal area may be slightly laid back compared to the Quad; and perhaps it lags just a little on the faster metal material, but the overall sound is just so easy to listen to.

Now my initial idea was a couple of tracks off each album, just for a test.
First up was Metallica, MOP - by the time I got to 'Disposable Heroes' I knew I had to force myself off the sofa and change the CD or I'd just have to listen to the entire disc! It was that comfortable.
Side 1 of Misplaced Childhood came and went in a flash, as did all of Hounds of Love. This is just too nice...
Sheffield Drive was an excellent test of dynamics, and to my ears the little Yarland passed admirably. Finally John Rutters Requiem and the Gladiator soundtrack are just beautiful pieces of music that suck you in and don't let go. Again I had to deliberately tear myself away to skip tracks and change albums.

In summary, why are valve amps so easy to listen to? I don't know yet, but if this little Yarland is anything to go by, I think I'm a convert.